Full bodied and rich color, our imperial porter has hints of roasted coffee, cocoa with a generous hop finish. Dark roasted malts blended with the crispness of English hops, this beer is smooth yet complex.

Poured from a 12 oz brown bottle into a clear glass snifter. Bottle date on the neck is smudged and unreadable. Purchased at Total Wine (Norwalk, CT).

A: Mahogany hue with 1/2-finger of medium beige head that fades pretty quickly but leaves a few lace dots.

S: A very fruity and roasty aroma with a big dose of caramel and toffee and light herbal hop scents creep in

T: The flavor is a bit too sweet from the caramel notes and a bit too sour in the finish. This is a complex imperial porter without a doubt, but it ranges too far and off the map on both ends of the spectrum. THe sweetness dominates with a sugar-sweet caramel note, lightly buttery, that fades into a candylike sweetness through the middle palate. The mid-palate does pull through with a number of dark fruit flavors like raisin, fig, and plum, mostly raisin. The finish is a little more sour than it should be for the style. Hopping is detectable and herbal-lemon in nature. Alcohol is present and leaves a light sour cherry aftertaste. Bitterness is light.

M: A smooth-drinking porter for the ABV with low-medium carbonation and medium body. Finish is not dry or lush - pretty middle of the road.

O: Thomas Hooker's Imperial Porter is a pretty good beer that has a bit too much intense sweetness in the early and mid-palate and overly pronounced sourness in the finish. it is complex however and worth a try as it may hit some people's palate right in the sweet spot.

Recieved in trade from RustyDiamond a while back, thanks Rusty. Thomas Hooker's Imperial Porter pours a beautiful garnet with glowing mahogany highlights that peek through in waves throughout the glass. One finger creamy beige head formed on the pour and slowly faded to a skim coat with a thick collar. Leaves some moderate lacing. Good looking porter.

Great smell! Rich aroma of doughy dark bread and lightly roasted grains. The middle breaks away from the doughiness just enough to let dark fruit shine through. Plum and figs (leaning more toward the figs) are sprinkled with brown sugar and provide a great complexity. On the backend the roastiness falls to the back along with the fruits and that dark bread doughiness dominates. My mouth is watering.

I think the flavor is actually shows more complexity than the aroma. The flavor is similar to the smell but the dark breadiness is more pronounced upfront. Mid-palate brings the dark fruitiness along with mild coffee. The hint of coffee tastes excellent in this beer. The finish brings a faint but quick cream quality. On the swallow (I'm surprised by this one) comes a solid leafy hoppiness that, along with the roasty malts, leave a noticeable bitterness. Layers of flavor. This is a great porter.

The mouthfeel is luxurious and creamy with a velvety feel as it glides effortlessly across my mouth. Low carbonation lets all the flavors work at their own pace and they all work great.

On a cool evening, like tonight, I could drink this beer all night long. An unbelievably easy porter to put away.

My first sample from Thomas Hooker and one of the best, if not the best, porter I've come across yet. An absolute joy to drink. Wish this was available in my area it would be a staple in my fridge in the Winter months.

L – Deep brown, nearly black color with a huge 4-finger bubbly, tan head. Really nice retention as the head fades down into a half-finger of froth that sticks around for most of the experience. There are some wisps of lacing.

S – Mostly sweeter aromas including raisins, black cherries, and cocoa are apparent, but a nice amount of roasted malt is there, too.

T – It starts off sweet with cocoa, raisins, black currants and cherries, and a touch of vanilla and eventually progresses to a dry, bittersweet roasted taste with coffee and dark chocolate notes. This is really tasty.

F – Medium-to-full-bodied with average carbonation, a sticky, mouth-coating, and velvety-smooth feel, and a bittersweet and dry finish. Sweeter flavors like chocolate and dark fruits linger the longest. There is a very subtle and smooth throat-warming sensation from the alcohol.

O – This is a really nice porter. It is not very complex but it is very true-to-style and very tasty. I love the thicker mouthfeel that almost borders on stout territory, and it is insanely drinkable for 8% ABV. If I hadn’t known, I would’ve guessed it was around 5-6%. I’m really glad that I got to try this one. I’m glad I have another offering from Thomas Hooker (Liberator) in my fridge. I’ll have to check out more from them when I’m back up in New England. Thanks, Jared!